connecting*the*dots

I moved connecting*the*dots over to Sue Polinsky’s TechTriad servers a few months back because Dreamhost was chugging and crashing all over the place.

Not a bad decision, eh?

(originally uploaded by Jeremy Dennis)

I want to make it very clear where I stand on the issue of the RMA report hitting the internet this yesterday morning.

The RMA needed to be released into the public domain.

Because this document was originally leaked from within city management, the cat has been out of the bag for a long time now, hiding in the engine chassis of many parked cars around town… cars with media powered megaphones.

Once that happened, there was no way for the city to professionally manage whatever issues existed within the GPD behind closed doors.

With all the conflicting commentary and positions in local papers and blogs following the original leak (such as The N&R, The Rhino, Guarino, Hoggard, The Troublemaker and Ed Cone) over the past God knows how many months, there really was no way for any resident of Greensboro (including me) to follow the numerous threads, form an informed opinion on any discrete level and ultimately, trust both city managers and the police department.

So, was I was receptive to obtain a copy of the report the other day and read for myself the details behind what drove the city to lock David Wray out of his office?

Abso-fucking-lutely.

I was also amped for it’s public consumption in the near future, because I had heard through the grapevine just a few days ago that a local print publisher had planned to print it… on this Thursday (whether that was true or not, who knows for sure).

Now here’s where the big ol’ but! of my perspective contradicts my previous position.

Greensboro101 is not an individually run web site

For Roch to allow the file to be available in the interface for an extended period of time after it was uploaded anonymously to 101 without notifying his editorial board, I do feel it was an irresponsible move in regards to his unpaid advisers.

Again, let me be perfectly clear: I completely support this document being available to all Greensboro citizens, especially after it has been used by a select few in town (media and residents) to construct their message since the original leak… but, to allow it on 101 signifies that everyone associated with 101 backs that decision.

Obviously, Ben, Sue, Jay and Cara Michele did not support that decision.

So while it is Roch’s right to keep the provided file available to the public, he in turn must take full responsibility for his decision.

And as far as I can tell — by speaking with three quarters of the resigning party — they’re fine to leave the actions of this day as an editorial decision, pure and simple, and go their separate ways. From what I gather, Roch feels the same.

Case closed. (UPDATE: Or is it?)

The 101 Of My Relationship To 101

When I first moved to town last year, Roch and I rapped a bit about the potential of Greensboro101 at one of my first Blogsboro Meetups. After having a few beers downtown later that week, Roch asked me if I’d like to serve on an advisory board, touting Ed Cone and Jay Rosen as members.

Interested in the potential of 101 and having met neither Ed or Jay at the time (both of whom I respected very much), I agreed.

Later that week, I provided Roch with a bio to publish and assist him in his conversations with potential investors.

Since that conversation sometime last fall, Roch and I have not spoken once about the future of 101.

Zero.

Nada.

Being that I don’t agree with the way that he proceeded in this manner — even though I do support his decision to keep the file available — I’ve asked Roch to remove me from our imaginary relationship. I’m not quite sure he understands my position, but that’s fine.

I have much more important things to focus on.

UPDATE: In the comments, Ed denies ever being an advisor to 101. I apologize to both Ed and Jay for even mentioning them if that is truly the case.

UPDATE II: Roch sets Ben straight regarding the business advisory board we thought we were a part of by allowing our resumes to be presented to potential investors:

This “business� advisory board that Sean and Ben “resigned� from was never empanelled and never convened.

With ConvergeSouth coming around the bend (next Friday and Saturday, registration is still free and open), I had a few questions about the second annual festival / conference / unconference popping around in my noggin’.

Enter Ben Hwang, technology and community advocate extraordinaire. Ben is the co-founder of ConvergeSouth, the lead for Media|ConvergeSouth and the idea guy behind Firelace LLC and numerous other non-profit projects. (Disclosure: Ben is also on the Board of Directors of my non-profit: The People, Yes)

In-between work and blogging, we both somehow found the time to connect over IM. The following is our conversation:

spcoon 1:57
So, Ben, what gave you the idea for ConvergeSouth?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:00
SXSW.

Ever since I began tracking BoingBoing and the rest of the Internet, I’ve paid more attention to it. When I saw what that conference did for the city of Austin, I thought: why couldn’t we do a similar type of event with a spin? I did some searches and there were only NXNW and NXNE but no SXSE.

spcoon 2:01
So, why didn’t you call it SXSE?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:04
When I brought the idea to Sue, SXSE was a choice, but Sue and Ed brainstormed a whole bunch of names and came up with ConvergeSouth. It gave us the ability to key in the Gate City as part of the theme — at least from my perspective.

spcoon 2:07
Good choice ;-)

Okay, call me a transplant Yankee, but I don’t get the Gate City reference. I’m guessing that refers to Greensboro?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:09
Yeah, Gate City is another name for Greensboro. It’s the name that was used back when all the railroad tracks all ended up here. It’s still the Gate City due to many of the shipping lines still using Greensboro as a center point (I believe).

spcoon 2:10
Nice… ConvergeSouth is definitely strong enough to carry over that subtlety.

Ok, speaking of SXSW, Austin had a few things going for it before the launch of the event 15 years ago; a college town, thriving music scene, strong software development community, independent filmmakers, progressive politics (to name a few).

What similarities do you see with Greensboro and how does Greensboro differentiate itself — good, bad or indifferent?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:14
#1: Greensboro is a lot smaller. In the past five years, the live music/bar/clubbing scene has gone from practically non-existent, to an outrageously fun place for young adults. It’s not a NYC or Austin by any means, but our population is also a wee bit less than those types of cities.

#2: Independent filmmaking. We’ve had Greensboro’s Child made here, participated in The 48 Hour Film Project and three (if I counted correctly since I’m not in that line of work) other movies filmed here in the last year. Maybe it was more, I don’t remember offhand.

I think on a scale, Austin is larger and more diverse, but Greensboro is like a teenager eager to leave the nest and go play in the bigger world of things. All we’re doing is giving it a few nudges here and there to guide it into the footsteps of those larger and more influential and in general more “fun” cities.

It’s going a good direction from my POV. There’s a lot of character in this city. A lot more than when I first moved here, which was about when all of the action started to seed from what I’m told.

spcoon 2:22
Sucking up to the interviewer by mentioning his brother’s film… nice.

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:23
Dang straight.

spcoon 2:24
You mention character… you know, I think you hit upon something there. Friends of mine back in Jersey ask me why I love it so much down here, and I always point to the character of the town — how there’s always an interesting conversation happening between the black and white of an issue, the left and right of a position… is that what you mean by character as well?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:32
I’d have to say the economic growth and capitalizing on small businesses in the downtown area has been a major part of the character I’m speaking of. The left/right and black/white conversations definitely bring out a lot of good in people, but also vice-versa, be it here or anywhere else. I think that this city is a lot more progressive than some feel about it. Speaking from a transplant perspective of course.

So that is character as well, but I’m not speaking to that end of it. Most of what I’m involved in is with the former (economic growth, technology, downtown, etc).

spcoon 2:35
Yeah, I feel you on that end as well. I guess what’s really interesting for me is sensing a tangible intersection between all of these economic developments, conversations, events, etc. — like a crazy looking Venn diagram — as I go about my personal/business life here in town.

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:36
Venn diagram. Scary. I haven’t heard that term in… gosh, years.

spcoon 2:36
Heh… So do you think that the blogging community in this area has helped shape this meshed, overlap of community that we find here?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:44
Definitely. The blogging community here is probably what defines a lot of Greensboro’s character actually, now that I think about it. It’s almost like we’re the Brady Bunch. Every so often Peter and Bobby would get in a tiff, but when it came to protecting your own — Greg would come out swinging (or something like that.)

We definitely caught onto the blogging breeze when it blew through here -– a lot more than anywhere else I’d imagine. People might snicker, but there’s got to be something behind the LA Times dubbing us as “Blogsboro” (even though I despise that name. lol)

spcoon 2:47
So with ~250,000 residents, Ben, how can a vocal blogosphere of 50 to 100 people help shape community?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 2:48
Those 50-100 people are the ones that are willing to speak out in the name of the community. It’s like letters to the editor, except you get to present your voice to the whole world to take notice.

Hopefully more people would be willing to speak out later on, but someone needs to break the ice.

spcoon 2:50
How can blogging help enable different communities moving forward? Or are you going to tell me to wait for Elizabeth Edwards to lead her discussion at ConvergeSouth?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 3:02
Blogging is a conversation between author and commenter — well, assuming the blogger writes back within the comments. How can it help different communities to move forward? Well, it’s more like water cooler talk really. Talking doesn’t make anything happen, except perhaps gives you more ideas. You have to take those ideas and act on them.

Just because I say “Bob was at Jim’s house this last weekend for a game of bridge.” doesn’t mean it happened; It’s just talk. But talk is the first step to getting something going, or at least enlightening yourself to other perspectives. More options usually mean more solutions to problems. And that’s always a good thing.

spcoon 3:47
So what should I expect to experience on October 13th & 14th?

ben (phxnetwrxlab) 3:53
The ability to explore different mediums to amplify your voice… or to simply listen to those who are doing so.

We (Media|ConvergeSouth) ask that artists contribute, because their talent is in the driver’s seat (we have contributors from as far as the UK).

The main event (ConvergeSouth) surrounds technology and the people that use them to build social circles. Hopefully those circles intersect some like your Venn diagrams and create and benefit the larger community.

But more than anything, we simply want people to have a good time, because as part of the all-volunteer staff, we’d like to see that our time was well spent in helping the community (both online and off) by creating this annual event.

spcoon 3:55
Thanks, Ben!

/end interview

Online Videos by Veoh.com

I’ve lived in 10 different towns within 4 different states over the past 12 years and never has my interest in local politics and community piqued beyond a yawn until I moved to Greensboro, NC.

I swear there’s something in the water.

(via Ed, original video by Tom Lassiter)

It’s been a while since my last update on the progress of The People, Yes!, so here’s my May report (yes, that’s me trying to become more organized):

Legal
Yesterday, Jordan Nance sent me the paperwork to apply for non-profit status in North Carolina. There’s one last thing I need to do before I file; put together a small staff of officers and directors.

Identity
Anthony Piraino is knee deep in round three of designing the identity for The People, Yes! Here are a few versions from round two:

I’m digging the gritty contrast, but we’re going to play with the typography a bit more. I think it’s coming along nicely. I’m going to head out into town this weekend and take some photographs that might work with the identity in the header. Down the road, all imagery on the site will be people-generated.

Platform
Sue Polinsky (of TechTriad) is now hosting the domain, while Jonathan Daniel and Nate Aune have expressed interest in helping me develop the actual platform. Phase One will concentrate on simply implementing a collaborative WP blog with an overly simplified publishing interface. Phase Two is classified information, unless I decide to leak it to the blogosphere. ;)

Grassroots
Cara Michele and I haven’t had a meeting in a few weeks, but she has already introduced the concept to a handful of her friends in the homeless community and apparently there is solid interest to participate in the project. Once we get the platform running, both Ed Cone and Jay Ovittore have offered their services to run a blogging 101 workshop in order to help acclimate the people to the technology and the pro’s and con’s of transparent blogging.

We’re still a ways away from operating on all cylinders, but we’re getting there a bit more each day. I can’t fully express how overwhelmed I’ve been by the outpouring of support within this community and across the country, friends both new and old.

The People, Yes! is about the people. Yes, it truly is.

Within hours of posting my need for pro-bono legal assistance in setting up The People, Yes! as a non-profit organization, Liza Sabater got the word out at culturekitchen and Sue Polinsky — local blogger, tech genius and contributer to everything non-profit — pointed me to David Kyger at the local law firm, Smith Moore LLP.

Today, I’m very grateful to be able to announce that David and Jordan Nance have taken my project under their legal wings.

Thank you, gentlemen.

Blogger gal vs. Newspaper guy!

Well, not quite, but it makes a great lede, eh?

Sue, Lex and I met over lunch yesterday to discuss potential strategies for evolving the News & Record’s citizen journalism efforts. And no, we didn’t have a stare off.

Man… Lex is in a tough position; he’s completely open to forward-thinking ideas (I mean, his title is Citizen Journalism Coordinator), but he also seems to be up against a bottom line business that’s very adverse to risk. Apparently, changing the approach to meeting a historically profitable bottom line is a tough sell, even within an industry that’s on shaky ground.

It’s amazing how palpable sand can become to the heads of industry during innovative times.

That’s not to say that the N&R hasn’t been progressive with their citizen journalism efforts to date — they have — but Lex knows that in just a few years the N&R (both print and online) will have to directly compete with new forms of dynamic, community-based, participatory, online news applications (e.g. Newsvine), which will be free of legacy organizational overhead and be able to react with agility.

And you can’t forget those pesky bloggers.

The N&R needs to step up their game.

So we chatted. And ate. And chatted some more. And by the time our conversation came to a close, we had a number of interesting ideas on the table:

• Personal Relationships - Lex is looking to develop relationships with members of the Greensboro community, offering them the opportunity to use N&R resources (legal, photography, journalist feedback, etc.) to craft substantive citizen journalism. To me, this approach perfectly fits the future of print newspapers, as time-based news is dead on paper. They’ll have to compete as daily magazines (more depth, less coverage).

• Real-time Blogging Input - I suggested promoting a tagging schema that matched the classification structure of both the paper and the site:

  For example, identify and promote a unique set of “greensboro[xxxx]” tags, for anyone to use on blog posts, flickr images, etc. when generating Greensboro specific news, events, opinions, etc.

  Internally, the N&R editorial staff would then set up RSS aggregators with subscriptions of each tag search result.

  The real-time input of potential stories and assets would increase exponentially, while the N&R would continue to have editorial control, as the aggregator would serve as the queue into the publishing process

• Representation Across The Community - Sue focused on the concept of encouraging participation along the lines of community diversity (her connections with Uplifter is right along the lines of my focus with The People, Yes!). We talked about ideas ranging from developing blogging 101 material to share with a non-computer literate demographic to grass roots representation within sub-communities (e.g. school board meetings) to encourage live-blogging with the unique tag identifiers

An interesting start, but there’s still one major component that we’re skirting: Revenue incentives.

Lex made it clear that creating a participatory revenue model doesn’t fall under his charge, but the N&R is open to ideas. My perspective is that without incentive, participation will be lighter, with less quality and dedication. Any revenue generated out of these relationships should be viewed as found money, so share and share alike:

• To tap into the wisdom of the blogosphere by republishing the original post or an edited version, a buisness needs to develop a revenue model that fairly represents such a relationship.
• To partner with individuals from the community to generate community-based journalism, a business needs to develop a revenue model to encourage such a partnership.

It comes down to this: Pony up or we, the citizens, will simply get together and form collaborative blogs, creating relevant identities, gain a better footprint in Google over a 3 month period of time and, eventually, sign up with BlogAds to support our own voice.

That’s not a threat. ;-) I’m looking forward to our next conversation, folks.

UPDATE: Six months after the fact, in the NORG session at ConvergeSouth, Ed Cone backs up my philosophy regarding partnering with local bloggers/writers in a revenue share program.